Hippo Days (Klance childhood friend AU)
by chrysanthemum bell
Summary: "But he remembers Lance's hug, and thinks, maybe it'll be okay." Sometimes all it takes to spark a friendship is a doodle of a hippo, and sometimes life doesn't go the way you want it to go. Starts fluffy and gets pretty angsty. Main focus on Klance, but the rest of the cast appears often. This was originally going to be a no space AU but just tell me if you'd like it to be!
1. Hippo Days

"Hi! My name is Lance. Do you want to play with me?"

Keith's head whips up instantly, eyes wide with shock. He hastily glances around to be sure the boy isn't talking to anyone else, but of course Keith is the only one sitting at the far edge of the playground on the secluded damp wooden bench. Like always, he had planned to read comic books or doodle hippos on the corners of his notebook pages, but this is new. He's not sure if he likes the attention or not.

The boy, Lance, seems to forget what he was asking when he sees the hippo carefully drawn on Keith's notebook. Drawing is one of the only things Keith has patience for; everything else Keith rushes through, impatient to finish. His teacher described him in his report card as "a very bright young boy and a fast learner! If he participated in class a bit more, he might feel more comfortable with his peers." Keith thinks the opposite. Getting everyone's attention on him would make him draw in more, not suddenly become a social butterfly.

Keith doesn't memorize any of the faces or names of his classmates, but Lance seems familiar. Maybe he's in his class?

"Wow! Is that a hippo? Awesome! Cool!" Lance excitedly gushes, stumbling over his words a bit. He punctuates his words with exclamations, a jittery ball of energy ready to burst. "Are you an artist? You're really good!"

Keith stares at him like he's grown another head. "…Good?"

Lance stares back hesitantly. "Yeah?"

"Everyone thinks my hippos look like cows," Keith admits quietly. "I'm not that good."

Lance scoffs. "Cows look way different than that! That's definitely a hippo. They don't know what they're talking about. I should know, every summer I go to my aunt's out in the middle of nowhere, and she has a ton of land, and there are these cows-" As Lance talks, his face lights up, his wide grin displaying blue braces. Keith listens intently, which is unusual. Usually when people talk for a long time, his mind wanders elsewhere, but Lance's rambling is engaging, from the way he waves his arms around dramatically to his facial expressions and wiggling eyebrows. Lance strikes Keith as a band kid or a theater kid.

The rest of the period, they sit and talk at the edge of the playground, under the comfortable shade of leaves, and they barely notice the bell signaling the end of recess and the other kids retreating to class. When a teacher calls for them to return, they walk back to class hand in hand. As they enter the same classroom, Keith notices Lance has been in Keith's class the entire time, sitting right in front of him. Huh. Maybe he _should_ pay more attention in class.

"You're smiling!" exclaims Keith's mother when he opens the front door and trots into the kitchen.

Keith reaches up to touch his lips and realizes that they are curled in a wide smile.

"What happened in school that made you so happy, dear?" Keith's mother asks, tapping away at her sleek black laptop computer. Keith is about to say "nothing" like he always does, but then he remembers Lance's grin and stops.

"I have a friend, I think."

Keith's mother beams happily and pats Keith's head before returning to her work. Keith climbs up the stairs on all fours like an animal (his mother always scolds him for this, but he's too giddy to care) and collapses on his bed. He tightly hugs his hippo stuffed animal to his chest and wonders what his first friend has in store for him tomorrow.


	2. Shark Days

"Is that… a hippo?"

Lance nods nervously, biting his lip as he holds out a piece of notebook paper in front of him so a crudely drawn hippo is visible. He watches Keith, as if seeking approval from him. "I, uh, wanted to draw a really good hippo. Like you! But as you can see, I'm not the best at drawing."

Keith feels a smile bloom on his cheeks, and he gingerly takes the paper in his hands like it's something precious. "Is this your first time drawing a hippo?"

Lance smiles back sheepishly, the tension disappearing. "Yeah, was it that obvious?"

"It's really good for your first time!" Keith assures Lance, tracing the pencil lines with his finger. "Most people have no idea what hippos even look like. It's really cute."

"Really? You aren't just saying that?"

"Yeah. I can help you improve if you want." Keith moves to return Lance's drawing, but he pushes it back, seeming embarrassed.

"It's a present. For you."

Keith gapes at Lance. No one has ever been this thoughtful. No one he knows has attempted to draw a hippo too, only told him it looked "nice." He's only known Lance since yesterday, and he's already receiving a handmade gift. It makes something sweet bubble in his chest. Who knew having a friend could be this great?

"Wow. Um, thanks, Lance," Keith finally says, sending Lance a grateful smile. Lance shyly smiles in reply before quickly swerving around in his chair to face forward as class starts.

Then Keith gets an idea.

"Hey," he whispers, tapping his pencil lightly on Lance's shoulder. "What's your favorite animal?"

Lance says softly, "shark."

Keith hasn't drawn sharks much, but he's sure he can try for Lance's sake. After all, it's only fair.

As it turns out, drawing sharks is much harder than it seems.

The abomination on Keith's notebook looks nothing like a shark, but that's what comes from him spending his entire childhood drawing nothing but hippo after hippo. Since Keith was able to hold a pencil, he scribbled hippos in his hippo onesie as he learned to write his name. But sharks? He's far from experienced in _that_ department.

"What'cha drawin'? A hippo?" Lance asks, peeking at Keith's notebook as he munches on his PB&J sandwich. Yesterday, and all the school days before that, Keith has sat alone at a lunch table, which is quite a feat considering the amount of kids at this public school. Today, he is joined by Lance for the first time ever, but like usual, Keith is drawing and ignoring his usual school lunch of pizza and broccoli.

"Nothing," Keith says quickly, hiding the notebook against his chest to keep the drawing a secret (even if it looks terrible). Lance eyes Keith suspiciously before shrugging and returning to his lunch, rambling about random things like always. Keith usually dislikes chatterboxes, because they're too loud and obnoxious, but Lance is different. He listens encouragingly when Keith has something to say, and he doesn't interrupt Keith.

Keith still can't draw a stupid (Keith knows it's a bad word but he has to say it) shark. Why is such a difficult creature Lance's favorite? Hippos are better, after all. Cute and easy to draw.

Finally, Keith fixes it so it at least vaguely resembles a fish. It isn't as good as he'd like it to be, but it'll have to do.

At recess, Keith and Lance sprint to the swings so they can reserve the spots for themselves; Keith carries his hippo-filled red notebook under his arm, laying it down on the mulch ground so he can swing with Lance. They pump their legs in sync, laughing when their swings match up perfectly. "We're double dating!" Lance giggles, though neither of them have any idea what it means. Lance is really good at jumping off the swings at the right moment so he can gracefully fly through the air and land in the mulch. Keith attempts this to no avail, and the swing flings him off so he lands painfully on his stomach. Lance rushes over and "kisses his boo-boos better" or whatever, and they give up on swinging.

They go back to the bench at the edge of the playground, far from the other second graders chasing each other and trading Pokemon cards. There aren't even any teachers monitoring them. It feels special to Keith, not only because he's always sat here alone, but because now he has someone to share the secret with.

"Is that… a shark?" Lance asks when Keith presents his drawing. In Keith's opinion, it looks terrible. It even has pizza sauce stains!

"Uh-huh. I know it's not that good, but I've never drawn a shark before, and-"

Before he can continue, Lance tackles Keith in a tight hug, like he just won a million dollars or something. Keith relaxes and hugs Lance back, though he's not sure why Lance is so excited.

"No one's ever drawn me a shark! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"Now we're fair!" Keith replies.

Lance uses Keith's pen to scribble a pair of sunglasses and a smile on the shark, naming him "Jimmy the Cool Shark." When Keith asks why, he only shrugs. "Why not?"

Keith goes home and proudly presents Lance's hippo to his mother, who says it's "nice," and he sticks the drawing to his bedroom wall where he can see it using a blue smiley face sticker.

Then he searches up a picture of a shark and draws a proper "Jimmy the Cool Shark," complete with shades and a toothy smile.


	3. Pinky Swear

"Will we get married when we grow up?"

Keith blinks.

"What?"

Lance seems to say whatever thought pops into his mind, and this is one of them. Or is it? The way Lance's eyes are trained intensely on Keith makes him think that maybe Lance has been thinking about this for a while.

"We're only 8," Keith says slowly, as if Lance didn't know. Lance rolls his eyes.

"Well, yeah, though I'm 7. That's not my point."

Keith cocks his head to the side, confused. "But why would we need to get married? We're already best friends."

Lance bites his lip the way he always does when he's nervous, drumming his fingers on his lap. "When you marry someone it means you'll stay with them forever and care about them a lot. My mommy and daddy are really happy together, like us! My mommy says friends don't always stay friends when they grow up, and I don't want that to happen." Lance stares directly into Keith's eyes, determined. "I don't want to lose you."

Keith nods. "Me too." The past year has been amazing, and second grade is almost over. Keith and Lance are currently sitting side by side on the school bus like they have everyday, and they have playdates every week. Lance is his best and only friend. He can't imagine what it would be like to not be friends with Lance, to not laugh with him and not see him everyday at school. Why would he ever want to leave Lance?

"Even if we don't get married. Let's stay friends forever, okay? Pinky swear! No turning back." Lance offers a tan pinky finger, and Keith wraps his pale pinky around it.

"No turning back," Keith repeats. For some reason, dread swirls in his stomach, but he focuses on Lance's smile instead. School has been a million times better with Lance, but he can't wait for summer break to begin.

Summer is terrible.

Keith goes to live with his dad in Texas for a while, even though he hasn't visited his dad for a while. He doesn't question why his mother doesn't stay with them. She says she has too much work, but they should be a family going on family vacations together, right? It's been a long time since his parents have been romantic and gross.

It's actually really fun. Keith's dad takes him out to do all sorts of things, to eat ice cream and ride thrilling roller coasters and watch scary movies. In that moment, Keith wishes desperately that his dad would just live with them in Ohio so they could just be a happy, normal family. A complete family. He wishes his parents could just be super in love like Lance's parents are. They're married! They're supposed to act like it!

Until they aren't married.

Keith doesn't know why it makes him feel like he did something wrong for it to end up this way. He should have seen it coming, and he knew that eventually their fragile family would fall apart, so why does it hurt so much?

Keith remembers that Lance said marrying means people are together forever and care for each other a lot. Keith laughs bitterly at this. A bunch of words and a couple of rings aren't going to stop people from leaving each other, and it doesn't guarantee they'll have a perfect relationship.

Keith's parents agree that Keith should live with his mother and visit his father every once in a while. It sounds so official to call his parents' breakup "divorce," so when Keith returns to Ohio in time for Lance's birthday in July, he doesn't tell Lance that his parents are divorced.

"They don't love each other anymore. I don't want that to happen to us. Marriage is dumb," Keith rants, tears and snot running down his face no matter how much he swipes at his face with his hands. Lance offers Keith several tissues and a hug, and Keith accepts gratefully.

"It's okay. We don't have to marry, Keith."

"Yeah."


	4. July Birthday

The rest of the summer is spent entirely with Lance at Keith's side. They avoid Keith's house, because his mother has been acting… different after the divorce. Mostly, Keith bikes to Lance's house, and they enjoy sweet popsicles to battle the sweltering heat. It's not nearly as hot as it was in Texas, but Keith doesn't say no to more popsicles.

Lance's family is big and there's always something happening in his house. It's nothing like Keith's lonely house with no pets and no dad. Keith fits right in, and even befriends Lance's many siblings. Lance complains about them, but Keith can tell that he loves them a lot.

"Angelica is being annoying," he says with a flourish of his hand as he grudgingly braids his sister's hair, even though his voice is light and his mouth is curved in a fond smile. The girl only sticks her pink tongue out at him, and Keith laughs.

Lance's family is also always busy, and that means they can't pay attention to Lance as much. There's so much drama that Lance says "it's better if I just do what I'm supposed to." Seven-year-old boys are supposed to be rebellious little brats, but Keith and Lance are both mature for their age. Lance is a good brother.

"They don't pay as much attention to me as the baby, or my older siblings (they're preparing to graduate high school), but it's okay. I have you to talk to!" Lance says cheerfully. Keith understands what Lance means, even if he has no siblings. Sometimes, it's hard to get parents to pay attention to you.

On Lance's 8th birthday, the 28th of July, Lance has a birthday party. Keith would think someone as outgoing as Lance would have more friends, but the only friend he invites is Keith. The other guests are all cousins and relatives who hug and praise Lance enthusiastically at the door. Keith can tell Lance is extremely excited to have so much attention solely on him, his smile stretching from ear to ear and his eyes shining with excitement. Even with all his family members filing into the house and running around the hallways, Lance holds Keith's hand and rapidly talks to him, words spilling out of his mouth. Lance stutters a bit whenever he talks, and he's been going to speech therapy at school. Keith doesn't mind the stuttering at all. It's just another thing about Lance.

"You're so lucky your birthday is in the summer! My birthday is during the school year and I still have to do homework," Keith says to Lance as they eat fluffy vanilla cake topped with strawberries.

"Yup. Oh, take my strawberries, these are way too sweet for me," Lance insists, stabbing a syrupy strawberry with his fork and dropping it on Keith's paper plate. _Lance is the best_ , he thinks as he happily eats the sugary sweet berries, and Lance somehow comes to the conclusion that Keith's weakness is sweets. Okay, maybe Keith does have a tiny little sweet tooth. Doesn't everybody?

When it's time to open presents, Lance receives a ton of gifts, from socks to money to toys. At the end, Lance finally opens Keith's badly wrapped gift (Keith puffs his chest knowing he wrapped it all by himself) and gasps with delight at the stuffed shark plush inside. "Jimmy," he whispers, and the two boys laugh at the inside joke while Lance's relatives are entirely confused.

"I love it, thank you so much!" Lance hugs Keith after they giggle for several straight minutes for no apparent reason.

Then it's time to go home. Keith finds that he doesn't really want to go home after having such a great time with Lance, and he really likes Lance's parents. His mother is kind like Lance, but she is clearly the head of the family with her strong and responsible personality. Lance's laid-back father has an affinity for terrible puns and dad jokes, and also embarrassing Lance every chance he gets. "He's weird," Lance complains, even if they are strikingly similar.

"Have a good day! Thank you for coming, Lance really appreciates it! You're always welcome. And stay safe, Keith. Tell your parents that this is a gift from me," Lance's mother says quickly, reminding Keith of Lance's excited chattering. She hands Keith a box of homemade cookies with a wide smile and sends Keith off, Lance waving goodbye until Keith is out of sight.

He opens the front door and walks in like usual, but his mother is nowhere to be seen. Keith places the container on the kitchen counter and clambers up to his room.

Keith lays on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. From his mother's room, muffled sobs are audible, and Keith once again wishes that his family was normal. Like Lance's.

But he remembers Lance's hug, and thinks, maybe it'll be okay.


	5. Dog Days Part 1

When Keith quietly asks his mother if they can buy school supplies, she only stares into empty space with tired eyes and says, "Let's do that another day."

When Keith asks her a week later, she sighs a fluttering sigh, looks away from her son, and says, "Maybe tomorrow."

Keith knows what her answer will be if he asks again, so he silently leaves the house and asks Lance if he can tag along to buy school supplies.

"I have my own money." Keith proudly presents twenty five whole dollars that he saved in his piggy bank.

"Oooooh," Lance breathes in amazement. "I only have 5 dollars, I spent the rest on gummy bears."

They go to several stores, Lance's mother leading her children (and Keith) around the aisles with experience. The children giggle and talk loudly, attracting attention from other shoppers, but their mother easily silences them with a sharp glare that makes them shrink.

"Ooh, mommy! Me and Keith want matching backpacks, right?" Lance looks to Keith for confirmation, and Keith quickly nods.

Lance's mother laughs. "Keith and I, not me and Keith, Lance! And yes, you two can get matching backpacks."

"Yes!" Lance punches his fist in the air. "Victory!" Lance is excited about virtually anything. Keith doesn't know how he's so positive, but he never fails to put a smile on Keith's face.

"C'mon! I want a blue one, what color do you want?" Lance tugs Keith along, and Keith has to run just to catch up with Lance's long legs. Ugh. Tall people have too much power!

"Red. It's my favorite color."

"Red is nice," Lance hums in agreement. "But still, blue is the best! It's the color of the ocean, after all."

It's the color of Lance's eyes, too, and Keith can see why Lance likes blue so much.

"Red is the color of fire, and fire is cool," Keith argues.

"Nuh-uh, fire isn't cool! It's hot!" Lance laughs.

"Shut up!" Keith punches Lance lightly on the shoulder when he keeps laughing, but he's still smiling. "You know what I meant. You're starting to sound like your dad!"

"I do not," Lance pouts. "My dad is cool, but his jokes aren't!"

They reach the aisle with backpacks, and the only other person there is a kid around their age. He has a yellow band tied around his head, and looks contemplative as he scans the display for something.

"Hi! My name's Lance, what's yours?" Lance pipes brightly, sticking a long hand out towards the other boy. The boy squeaks at Lance's sudden greeting and freezes, staring at Lance nervously. He relaxes at Lance's warm smile, and extends his hand to shake Lance's.

"My friends call me Hunk," the boy says with a shy smile. "I just moved here this summer."

"Hi Hunk! This is my best friend, Keith!" At this, Keith raises a hand and awkwardly waves at Hunk, who waves back. Now that he's not so nervous, Hunk looks very friendly and open.

"You're looking for a backpack, right? Which color do you want?" Lance asks.

"Yellow," Hunk replies instantly. "But I can't find one. There really should be more yellow backpacks. Yellow is my favorite color."

"Mine is blue, but you're right! There isn't enough yellow. And it's such a happy color, too!" Lance agrees.

"I know, right? The sun is yellow!"

Keith kind of feels like a third wheel. Lance and Hunk have known each other for seconds and they're already talking like they've known each other for years, while Keith doesn't know how to talk to strangers.

"What's your favorite color?" Hunk asks, looking directly at Keith with a smile. Huh. Not many people other than Lance make an attempt to talk to the quiet kid. Hunk earns a gold star in Keith's book already. Maybe they can be friends after all.

"Red."

"Red's the color of roses! So it's a nice color," Hunk says sagely. "Roses are Ma's favorite flower. There's a lot of red and blue everywhere, though. Yellow deserves justice!"

The other boys agree, and soon they start chanting "yellow deserves justice," earning several amused and annoyed stares from adults.

"Oh! Hey, it's a dog backpack!" Hunk exclaims when he spots an adorable puppy-themed bag complete with a tongue, two black eyes, and velvety ears. It's not yellow, but it's enough to make Hunk's eyes sparkle. "I love dogs!"

"Who doesn't?" Lance says.

"You don't understand." Hunk slings the backpack around his shoulder. "Dogs are my favorite animal! I love them _this_ much!" Hunk stretches his arms out really wide.

"I have three dogs. One's a golden retriever named Molly, one's a pug-beagle mix named Charlie, and-"

Before Hunk can continue gushing about his many pets, his moms arrive. "Ma, Mommy, look! I have two new friends!"

One of his mothers messes up Hunk's hair ("Hey!") and laughs. "I knew you had nothing to worry about! Who wouldn't want to be friends with you, bud?" The other picks Hunk up in her arms and smiles at Lance and Keith.

The family leaves, Hunk waving energetically at the two best friends. "See you around, Hunk!" Lance calls. Keith waves back with a smile and wonders if they'll see Hunk at school.


	6. Dog Days Part 2

Keith and Lance are fortunately in the same class again, and they're allowed to pick seats, so of course Keith and Lance sit together. They spot Hunk and energetically greet him, and he sits in their cluster of four desks.

"I can't believe we're all in the same class!" Lance gushes excitedly, getting out his marine-sticker-covered blue folder out of his backpack. "Third grade is gonna be amazing!"

"I've heard that our teacher is really nice!" Hunk says with a smile. His folder is predictably yellow, with an adorable picture of three dogs tucked neatly inside.

"Yeah," agrees Keith because he can't think of anything else to say. His red folder feels extremely plain compared to the others. Maybe he should draw a hippo on it with a Sharpie?

The rest of the morning goes smoothly. Hunk is right; their teacher is incredibly nice, with a melodious voice and laugh. They go over procedures and do an ice-breaker activity to learn each others' names.

"I'm Lovable Lance!" Lance says proudly when it's his turn in the circle.

"Uhh… Happy Hunk?"

Keith has no idea what to say when it's his turn. "…um… C-cool Keith?"

"Cool doesn't start with K," points out another kid. Keith's face flushes red.

"K…"

"Kind Keith!" Lance saves Keith from further embarrassment, and he sends Lance a grateful smile.

The three of them eat lunch together, and they end up arguing about pizza toppings ("Pineapple is delicious on pizza!" "It is _not!")_ and finding more about Hunk. Hunk has two moms (his ma is an engineer and his mommy is a chef) and three dogs, he's an only child, he's Samoan, he loves cooking and baking, and he's basically a genius. Also, he really likes pineapple on pizza. Lance does not. (And Keith couldn't care less what goes on his pizza.)

Then at recess, everything goes wrong.

They're just playing together on the playground, standing on the gridded raised platform. Then someone interrupts them.

"Haha, look, it's a bunch of losers!"

It's the boy in their class who pointed out cool doesn't start with K.

"I-it takes one t-to know o-one!" Lance says loudly, trying to look confident. He's obviously terrified, shivering violently and stuttering over his words. The bully only laughs.

"Aw, is someone scared of the scary monster?" he points at Lance, stepping forward and forcing Lance to step back like a cornered animal. "What a baby! You think you're lovable? You only have two friends!"

"Please, stop!" Hunk cries, tears already welling in his eyes. His attempt at making peace does nothing against the boy.

"Shut up, fatty," the boy sneers, and Hunk bursts into tears.

Keith growls, and something vicious inside him is ready to lash out. "Stop…" he says, his voice low.

"Or what? Are you worried about your precious boyfriend?" Lance is now cowering at the edge of the platform, eyes wide as he breathes heavily. And then the bully pushes him off into the mulch.

It's nothing like the way Lance gracefully soars off the swings. This is much worse to watch. Almost as if in slow motion, Keith watches Lance's panicked expression as he shouts in surprise, arms windmilling as he tries to avoid his inevitable fall. Then he hits the dirty mulch on his back and begins to cry. The bully looks horrified, as if he can't believe he just did that. The fall wasn't that bad, but he still pushed a poor boy off a ledge above the ground.

Something snaps inside Keith.

Keith doesn't remember much of what happens, but he does remember hot, red, anger burning inside him, and his fist colliding with skin. There's red. Blood?

He distinctly remembers the bully's next words as he lays on the ground:

"Ha, your friend thinks you're kind? Imagine what he thinks now!"

Keith turns to see Lance, shaking and staring in disbelief, and Hunk staring with horror.

The playground is silent.

Then the teachers drag the two away from each other, and Lance and Hunk, both sobbing, are gently led to the nurse's office.


	7. Consequences

"That boy is a delinquent! He punched my son in the face!"

Keith sinks further into the blue plastic chair, shame burning on his cheeks. He wishes he could disappear entirely, if it would take him away from the pointing fingers and judgmental stares.

"Keith was defending both our son and Lance! Your son was bullying them!" Hunk's ma yells with equal fury.

"My boy was only teasing! At least _he_ didn't punch anyone in the face," insists the bully's mother.

"Your son," Lance's mother says, her voice low and shaky with rage, "pushed my son off a ledge. Keith acted accordingly; they are best friends. So what that your golden little boy didn't punch anyone in the face? He provoked Keith! His so-called teasing was blatant bullying! How do you justify his actions!?" Her voice rises with every word, surging in volume until she's yelling. Keith swears he can see her spitting fire as she speaks, and he couldn't be more grateful.

"Oh, so you're excusing this boy's actions but you can't forgive my son's? You're obviously biased!"

"I'm not excusing Keith's actions! I'm just saying that he had good reason to do what he did, and your son had no reason to pick on our boys!"

"That's enough!"

The principal's voice cuts through the bickering, and everyone goes silent. The principal drags a manicured hand down her face with exasperation.

"Look ladies, we're never going to get anywhere at this rate. Mrs. Iverson. Your son was clearly stepping out of line by bullying. We make it clear that there's a no bullying policy at our school. He will receive punishment accordingly. I am truly sorry that he was injured, but there is no excuse for bullying."

The bully's mother quietly seethes, but she shuts up anyway.

"Ms. Kogane."

Keith's mother looks up wearily. She's been sitting next to Keith the entire time, but she's been quiet the entire time. Keith can't tell if she's angry at him or not. She has barely looked at him once these past few months.

"Do you understand the consequences your son must face?"

She nods.

"I know Keith didn't mean any harm, but we can't just excuse him for punching another student, no matter the reason why."

She nods again.

"Okay, that's all. Your sons are all in the nurse's office, so you can bring them home now. I apologize that they had to experience this," the principal says sincerely, looking each of them in the eye. "Thank you for taking the time to talk about this. I really hope the rest of the year goes smoothly. No more fights," she says sternly to Keith, though she pats his head.

They all leave the office, and Keith reaches for his mother's hand. She grips tightly to his hand, and it's the most contact he's had with her in a long time. He wishes right then that he could hug her, so he does, and she carries him in her arms. He closes his eyes and rests his head on her shoulder, her steady walking lulling him to sleep. She talks to Lance's mother and Hunk's mother for a bit before carrying Keith to the car, and she presses a kiss to his cheek. By then, he's already asleep.

His dreams are filled with yelling and blood. He wakes up in his bed shuddering and sweating in the morning. Even if he hates the bully for hurting Lance and saying mean things to him and Hunk, he feels regret for punching him. Keith knows it was a terrible thing to do, and he wonders if he _is_ a delinquent after all. Is he not a good person? Is he not as kind as Lance thought he was? Maybe Lance doesn't want to be friends with him anymore because he punched someone. Oh no, is Lance scared of Keith? He remembers Lance's petrified expression when he was pushed, and his equally scared expression after Keith punched the boy. Was Lance scared of Keith? Is Keith dangerous now?

Keith wants to cry.

He quietly walks to the kitchen and hear's his mother's voice through the door. She's talking to someone on the phone.

"I-I can't do this anymore! He's always looking at me like he expects something, but I can't be a role model! I have work, a-and he just punched a kid! He reminds me so much of h-his father sometimes, a-and I just can't!"

Keith's feet are glued to the ground, his legs stiff. His mind is urging him to stop eavesdropping and go back to bed, but his body won't listen.

"H-he deserves someone strong, and I'm n-not that person! I feel like I'm going to break, a-and I'm not g-good enough," she sobs. Keith doesn't understand. He doesn't need his mother to be invincible. He just wants a mother.

"Please… I'm begging you. Just…" she sounds exhausted all of a sudden, and Keith turns and runs before she can discover him.

Keith wishes Lance was here. Lance would know how to make him feel better instantly. But Lance is probably sleeping in bed, and even if he is awake, he probably doesn't want to talk to Keith. So Keith sits in his bed, knees pulled close to his chin, and stares at Lance's badly drawn hippo. If only he could turn back time.


	8. Back to School

Keith is suspended. For a week. Then he returns to school.

If this was like last year, Keith wouldn't get suspended on the first day of school, and people wouldn't be whispering about him having anger issues. But unfortunately, this year is different.

Keith doesn't really care what the others think of him. All he can think about, the word thrumming through his head with every step he takes, is _Lance, Lance, Lance…_

Keith has no idea how Lance feels about Keith after the incident. But he has to find out sooner or later, so he opens the classroom door and marches in, not looking at anyone. Then he plops his backpack down and slowly looks up to see Lance.

Lance immediately hugs him.

"I'm so happy you're back!" Well. Keith can't say he was expecting Lance to say that.

"It's been so boring without you! I've been hanging with Hunk, but y'know, it's just not as fun without you!" Lance gushes.

"You're not… scared?"

Lance's eyebrows furrow in confusion. "What? Why would I be…?"

"Because I punched someone. In the face. And he was bleeding."

"He deserved it! He said a lot of mean things. To all of us. And yeah, maybe a punch to the face was kinda extreme, but you did it to protect us. You saved us! If you hadn't done anything, I don't know what would've happened."

"Oh. I didn't want to hurt anyone, it just… happened. I should have gotten a grown-up."

Lance shrugs. "Yeah, you could've. Maybe it would've been better. But that doesn't matter, because you stopped a bully, and that's in the past anyway."

"Okay. Is he still here?"

"Nope, his mom made him transfer schools."

Keith finally looked around the classroom, and the boy wasn't anywhere. Huh,

Keith feels a huge weight lift off his chest knowing Lance is happy he's back, and the bully isn't in their class anymore. If Lance was upset with him, and the bully was still here, he probably would have started crying.

Keith feels a smile blooming on his face for the first time in a week. Lance smiles back, his expression genuinely happy. It feels good to make someone else smile like that.

"Hi Keith!" another voice says warmly. He turns to see Hunk beaming at him, and Hunk hugs him too. Now it's a group hug, and Keith couldn't be more content.

"Thanks for standing up for us," Hunk says quietly. "My parents say that the bravest people are the ones who do something when nobody else will."

Keith doesn't know if he deserves all this praise for clocking a guy in the face, but right now, he really doesn't care. He lets himself be embraced by his friends. And when class starts, he's much calmer, and he feels incredibly light. Third grade had a rough start, but now he's okay, and he's going to try to make this the best year he can.

The rest of the year is pretty ordinary as far as school goes, especially compared to the incident at the beginning of the year, but with Lance and Hunk at his side, Keith has a lot of fun. They hang out all the time after school, and Keith gets to know Hunk's family more. Hunk's ma is fun and boisterous (and really terrible at cooking - Keith learns this the hard way when she attempts to teach the trio of boys how to make a simple meal) and Hunk's mommy is sweet and quiet, usually watching over the three as she cooks. Hunk's parents are extremely close, always kissing and hugging and calling each other pet names, and it makes Keith's heart pang when he goes home and sees his mother staring distantly out the window. Were his parents like that, once, before they moved away from each other and grew apart?

Keith, Lance, and Hunk come up with nicknames for each other. Keith is Red, Lance is Blue, and Hunk, obviously, is Yellow. They imagine themselves as astronauts when they play pretend, encountering strange alien life forms and soaring through space on a ship. They even build a fake rocket out of cardboard, and immerse themselves in wondrous fantasies of life in space.

"When I grow up, I want to be a mermaid!" Lance says excitedly. Keith raises an eyebrow in response.

"Okay, maybe not a mermaid. But still! The ocean is really cool, you can't deny that! I wanna study the ocean."

"Cool!" Hunk says. "I want to be an engineer like Ma, or an inventor or something! Or maybe a chef or baker? I dunno."

"You would be great at any of those jobs," Lance agrees. "Hey, Keith! What do you wanna be when you grow up?"

Keith contemplates this for a second. He's never really thought about his future. "I dunno. Maybe a pilot? Oh, an astronaut!"

"Yeah! You should go to space and put a flag with your face on it on the moon!"

"My face? That's too weird."

By the end of the year, Keith is really close with his two best friends (though Lance is still his _bestest_ best friend).


	9. Sleepover Start!

As Keith, Lance, and Hunk grow closer, Keith and his mother grow further apart. She smells weird now, and she's always crying. Keith wants to hug her, but he's not certain she would let him. He knows he shouldn't be scared of his own mother. But there's still that irrational fear beating fast in his heart, mostly because he doesn't really recognize her anymore, and she's always ignoring or avoiding him. She doesn't want him anymore. She doesn't tap on her computer keys anymore like she used to always do ("Dear, I'm working, so please don't bother me" she would always say). She doesn't really do anything. Keith is running out of clean clothes to wear, and he microwaves the soup and mac and cheese his mother leaves on the counter, and he tucks himself into bed. He even goes to bed at his bedtime, even though his mother doesn't tell him to anymore, and he also does all of his homework. He's used to this, because as a basically single mother, she comes home late a lot and leaves notes for him to follow, but now she doesn't even leave notes. Maybe he should get help from a grownup. Would that make her mad at Keith?

"Hey, Keith. I've never been to your house before," Lance says one day as the three of them play Uno in Lance's basement. It's summer now, and Keith is nine years old while Lance is eight. Hunk is also eight, even though he's very mature and acts like he's the oldest. "I've seen your mom sometimes at school events."

"Yeah… things are kinda… messy… at home," Keith says, cringing at the thought of Lance and Hunk coming over to see glass bottles littering the floor, and his mother staring blankly at them, saying nothing. "It's kind of bad, I guess. I'm ok, though."

"Really?" Hunk asks, concern written all over his expression. He puts down his deck of cards so all of them are visible ("Hunk!" Lance whines, "don't ruin the game for yourself!") and looks directly at Keith. "Are you sure things are ok? You can always come over if you need it."

"Yeah! Me too, our family loves you!" Lance chirps, eyes twinkling. "Angelica has basically taken you for an older brother. And my mom loves you too!"

"I know," Keith smiles appreciatively. Just earlier, Lance's mother had hugged both Keith and Hunk, and Lance's father had smiled at them kindly. He wishes he could live with Lance's family. Or Hunk's family. They have really cute dogs, especially Molly the puggle, and Hunk's mommy makes the best brownies. Hunk's ma always ruffles his hair so it's messy, though. Keith has been growing out his hair, mostly because his mom usually trims his hair herself, and she hasn't approached him with scissors recently, so yeah. He hopes his hair won't grow into some terrible hairstyle, but he at least attempts to comb through his unruly locks every morning.

"You know what? You guys should stay over!" Lance declares the way he always does when he has an idea, standing up and dropping his Uno cards as well. "It'll be a sleepover!"

"Wow! I've never been to a sleepover!" Hunk says excitedly.

"Me neither," Keith agrees. He has to admit that he's really excited.

"I've had plenty of sleepovers, but they've all been with my siblings, not my best friends! This is gonna be great! We can play Mario Kart, and Smash Bros, and we can pillow fight and play truth or dare! Ooh, I know some ghost stories, too! We can stay up late and talk and…"

Before they know it, the three boys are having their first sleepover. Hunk's ma drops off his stuff, and Keith bikes back to his house to get his things. He yells that he's staying at Lance's for the night, but only an empty silence follows. He doubts it matters, but he writes a note for his mom anyway and leaves it on the counter before biking back; Lance's house is fairly close to his.

They start off their sleepover by jumping on Lance's huge trampoline in his backyard. Lance attempts to do a back flip, but Hunk stops him before he accidentally breaks his neck. After working up a sweat, they head inside and eat ice cream. Lance likes chocolate, Keith likes strawberry, of course, and Hunk likes vanilla. Lance says that it's plain, but Hunk retorts that it's a classic.

Then they play Mario Kart Wii. Lance has experience after battling his siblings, but Hunk and Keith have both never played, which Lance gasps at and exclaims is a crime. It turns out Keith is insanely good for having no experience, and he wonders if he should ask for a Wii for his birthday. He has a computer at home, but he's never really been into video games.

Hunk (as Peach) is a very careful driver, not bumping into anyone and maintaining a consistent place in 5th. Lance (as Daisy), however, doesn't hesitate to barrel into other racers and send them off the ends of cliffs, placing him in first. After falling victim to Lance's ruthless technique, Keith (as Mario) is determined to overtake Lance, and after several rounds, Keith is up to second place.

"Let's play Rainbow Road!" Lance cheers.

"Um, ok," Keith says with a shrug. It looks like a pretty course, with colors swirling around a translucent track and a galaxy in the background.

Keith falls more times than he can count. He reaches to tickle Lance, who won first place, as punishment, but he easily dodges and sticks his tongue out. Hunk ends the game in fifth place, while Keith finishes in third, making him pout at Lance and cross his arms, though this is the most fun he's had.

By midnight, the three are ready to sleep after an intense pillow fight where Keith indisputably wins, and they get out their sleeping bags in Lance's bedroom. Lance turns the lights off except for his blue lava lamp, and clings to his shark stuffed animal as he faces the other two boys. Keith brought his stuffed hippo, and Hunk brought an adorable stuffed dog with him.

"Good night Keith! Good night Hunk!" Lance says sleepily.

"G'night," Keith says, rubbing his eyes.

"Sweet dreams, guys," Hunk yawns.

Keith never wants to leave. This is one of those days that he wants to keep forever in his memories, and he doesn't really want to let it go, but the world is slipping away no matter how hard Keith battles to keep his eyes open, and the last thing he sees is Lance gently snoring, completely at peace.


	10. Goodbye

The summer before fourth grade starts and Keith turns 10 years old, his mother tells him he will be moving away to live with the Shirogane family in Michigan for fourth grade. The Shiroganes are family friends of the Kogane family, and Keith has met them several times. They seem nice enough, but Keith doesn't want to leave his life just because his mom wants him to!

"I'm doing fine here, Mom!" It's been a long time since Keith has called his mother 'Mom.' "I have friends here! I can't just _leave_ them!"

Keith's mother sighs. "Keith. I can't take care of you anymore." Not that she _has_ been taking care of him lately. "I know it's hard, but… you'll be better off with a loving family. You know the Shiroganes. They're the kindest people I know. And it's not that far away, and they have a sixteen year old son."

"I could live with Lance's family! His family loves me, I know that for a fact! And, and, Hunk's parents are the coolest! Please, mom, I don't want to leave!" Keith pleads, eyes wide with tears. Keith's mother sadly shakes her head the way adults do.

"I'm sorry, Keith, but I don't know them well enough to let you stay with them. You can always visit your friends-"

"Maybe you'd know them better if you actually went with me to Lance's house or Hunk's house! Lance's parents and Hunk's parents are really close, but you don't even care where I go! Why are you suddenly acting like you do now?" Keith practically screams. Hurt flashes across his mother's face. Good. She deserves it.

"I- I-" she stutters, face red. She sounds upset. "I know I haven't been the best to you. I haven't been there when you've needed me. But it's just so hard without your father, and this is why you need to live with someone else."

"Mom! I'm okay like this. Before you and Dad… broke up… we lived alone, but we were fine! We just have to do that again." It's true that Keith's dad was never there, even though his mom and dad were married. Keith knows it must be terrible to divorce someone you vowed to stay with for life, but his mother is destroying herself like this. She's a shadow of what she used to be.

"No… even before your father and I divorced, I was struggling. You deserve a financially stable home with loving parents." Keith doesn't understand the big words she's using, but he does understand one thing.

"So you're disowning me? You're giving me away?"

"Of course not!" Keith's mother says, looking ashamed, but she doesn't say anything else.

"Whatever." Keith sprints to his room and flings himself on his bed. He really wishes he could have a phone so he could text Lance, but he doesn't have one, so he closes his eyes as tightly as possible and desperately hopes it's all just a terrible nightmare that'll go away when he wakes up again.

When he wakes up three hours later, it's dark outside, and nothing has changed. His head throbs and his chest feels hollow and empty due to his too-long nap, and he drags himself downstairs. Fortunately, his mom isn't there, but dinner is. It's the first homemade dinner in a long time, and Keith savors it, even though he's mad at his mom. He knows she's trying. He just wishes that he didn't have to leave.

The next morning, clean clothes sit in front of his door, freshly taken from the dryer. Instead of eating cereal, he enjoys bacon and eggs, and his mother taps away at her computer like before. He almost laughs. Everything is just the way it was before.

"Do I still have to go?" Keith asks, gulping down some milk.

"Yes."

"Why? This is fine!"

"…eat your breakfast, Keith." Ugh. Grown-ups need to stop avoiding questions. And they get mad at kids for making excuses!

"Hmph," Keith replies, finishing his breakfast before hopping on his bike to go to Lance's house, and Lance, who _does_ have a cell phone, calls Hunk's home phone so Hunk can come over. Keith tells Lance he has urgent, serious news, and Lance nods seriously. The three of them meet in Lance's bedroom.

Keith inhales. "I need to tell you guys something."

"Bad or good news?" Lance interjects.

"Bad."

Hunk and Lance both frown at Keith's bluntness.

"I'm moving. To Michigan. Really soon. I'm gonna be living with our family friends, I don't know how long. My mom says I have to, and I couldn't get her to let me stay, I tried, and, and-"

"It's okay. Breathe," Hunk says seriously but gently. Keith breathes, tears prickling at the corners of his eyes.

"I'm sorry. I might not see you guys ever again."

"It's not your fault! And Michigan is really close, we can visit you whenever!" Lance hurriedly comforts Keith. "It's a bummer you have to move, but we'll still be best friends no matter what, okay? Remember, we promised! And there's no breaking pinky swears."

"I…know. It's just really hard to make friends, and I've never moved before. I just can't help feeling like this is the end. Of this," Keith waves his hands around, "this life. And I really, really don't want it to be. This is nice. I mean, it's not easy, but at least it's normal."

"Aww buddy, come here," Hunk quietly says, stretching his arms so Keith can nestle comfortably in them. Lance joins, and soon it's another group hug, with Keith silently sobbing into his friends' shoulders. He really doesn't want to leave.

"It won't be the same, but we can make it work. I promise. We'll visit you, and if your new folks are nice, which I really hope they are, they'll let you visit us too. It'll be okay. You can call! I have a cell phone, remember? You should ask for one so we can text. And email, too. We can write letters if we have to," Lance rambles, and Keith nods gratefully. Lance always knows how to make him feel better.

They stay like that for a while, but then Hunk has to leave. Keith hesitates, but then pulls Hunk into another hug. "I'll miss you. You have to give your dogs a lot of love, for me, okay?" Keith sniffles. Hunk nods.

"I'll give them all the love in the world."

Then it's just Keith and Lance, how it used to be before everything went wrong and Keith's parents divorced and Keith punched a bully.

"You know, you're my best friend in the world," Lance says seriously, blue eyes trained on Keith's.

"Yeah. You too." Keith says eloquently.

"Okay. Um, I didn't know you would be leaving, but I have a gift that was supposed to be for your birthday. Open it then, okay?"

Lance presses a package into Keith's hands. It's decently wrapped ("my brother taught me how," Lance adds) and there's a huge blue sparkly bow sitting atop the purple wrapping paper ("because red and blue make purple! I learned that in art," Lance explains) that strikes Keith as… well, undeniably Lance.

"Sorry, I didn't make a card yet," Lance apologizes guiltily.

"No, it's okay!" Keith hastily assures him, "I wasn't expecting a gift anyway, it's not even my birthday yet, so this is amazing already!"

"Really?"

"Yeah. Thank you," Keith says, pouring as much emotion into his words as possible. Lance gives him a smile that doesn't quite reach his eyes, but it's a smile nonetheless.

"I hope I'll see you soon," Lance says quietly.

Keith hopes so too.


	11. Cat Days

This is it. This is the Shirogane house.

Keith takes a deep breath, inhaling for a few seconds and exhaling even longer. His belongings are packed into his suitcase, which he drags behind him, and his backpack holds Lance's present in it because he doesn't trust airlines with his luggage and Lance's present is too precious to stuff into a suitcase with all his clothes.

His mother is behind him, unspoken words hanging between them and unresolved tension tightly coiling around Keith's chest. He doesn't really want to talk to his mother, though. He's never been good at emotions, and his mother isn't, either. So they uncertainly orbit each other, never actually touching, and the words are left unsaid.

The suburban atmosphere is familiar and nostalgic, nicely kept green lawns with dandelions here and there. Keith follows the cement path leading to the front door, and neatly trimmed shrubs line the side of the house. Bright flowers make a flourishing garden in the summer heat, and Keith thinks of his mother's house, grey and empty without a vivid bloom in sight. He really wonders how his mother is best friends with Mrs. Shirogane when Mrs. Shirogane's house, though also painted a boring white with a black roof, is literally the definition of perfect. A tire swing hangs from the huge tree in front, and Keith remembers pumping his legs back and forth with a blue-eyed boy swinging beside him. He hopes they let him swing on it.

The last time Keith was here, he wasn't nine years old. He was only in preschool, and Takashi Shirogane was eleven. He doesn't really remember what Takashi was like, but he can only hope he's as nice as their front yard is. He's sixteen now, which means he's in high school, which means he's really big. And possibly scary. Or cool. Or both?

Keith's hand hovers over the doorbell, but feeling his mother's gaze on his back, he pushes the circular button, and it makes a satisfying ding. Then he steps back, not peering through the windows on either side of the front door because apparently that isn't polite, and he waits. Anticipation pools at the bottom of his stomach, and impatiently taps his foot on the welcome mat. Then the door swings open, and Mrs. Shirogane is standing there. She smiles warmly, directly at Keith, and it feels genuine.

"Keith! Welcome! It's been so long since I've seen you. Come on in, I'll take that," Mrs. Shirogane urges, reaching for his luggage, but before she can take his backpack as well, he protectively curls his fingers around the straps. She blinks, but then smiles again. "My son, Takashi, is so excited to see you! He's always wanted a younger brother, you know."

Brother is a strong term. It means Keith is really going to be part of this… family.

Mrs. Shirogane plants a kiss on Keith's head, and instead of finding it weird, he relishes the feeling of being loved. He obediently takes off his shoes (they're cowboy boots from his dad) and heads in. He can hear his mother and Mrs. Shirogane talking outside, so he shuts the door so it doesn't seem like he's eavesdropping.

The moment the door closes, Keith hears hurried footsteps, probably from Takashi, and anticipates seeing the sixteen-year-old, but instead, he is greeted first by a sleek black cat with velvety fur and big yellow eyes peering up at him. He instantly reaches to pet the cat, and she purrs and nuzzles Keith's leg. Hippos are Keith's favorite animal, but cats are pretty adorable too.

"Black!"

Keith's head immediately whips up at the sound of Takashi Shirogane's teenage boy voice that cracks slightly as he rushes down the carpeted stairs to retrieve his pet. The teen is holding a present in his hands, and he looks disheveled as he scoops up the cat and hands Keith the present.

"Hi, Keith, sorry for Black, she didn't hurt you or anything, right?" Takashi says. The cat in Takashi's arms lazily stares at Keith from her owner's arms.

"No, she was really nice! She let me pet her and everything," Keith says shyly. Takashi is currently growing, and he easily towers over Keith.

Takashi blinks at Keith. "…she didn't scratch you?"

"No? She even purred."

"Oh, that's a relief," Takashi sighs, looking lovingly at the cat lounging comfortably in his arms. "This little kitty doesn't usually take well to strangers, but I guess she likes you! You must be a cat whisperer."

Black meows adorably as if she understands their conversation.

"Anyway, sorry if I made a bad first impression. I'm Takashi, but you probably already know that. I haven't seen you in such a long time! You've really grown a lot, huh."

"Why'd you name her Black? Couldn't you have thought of something better?" Keith interrupts.

Takashi grimaces as if he's thought about this a lot. "Uh, yeah, about that. I was, like, five when I named her."

"My codename is Red, and my best friend Lance's codename is Blue, and my other best friend Hunk's codename is Yellow! We're all astronauts together!" Keith randomly says.

"Astronauts, huh? Wait 'till you see my room. I'm going to be an astronaut when I grow up," Takashi says proudly, and Keith's eyes light up like stars.

"Woah! That's amazing."

 _Maybe living here won't be so bad after all_ , Keith thinks, reaching out to scratch gently behind Black's ears.

"Oh, almost forgot! You should open the present from both Mom and me!"

Keith obediently tears the wrapping paper off to reveal a bright red jacket with a yellow stripe running horizontally. He immediately falls in love with it, and tugs it over his black t-shirt. It fits snugly, even if the sleeves are a bit long.

"Thanks," Keith says breathlessly, looking at Takashi in wonder. Takashi laughs and musses Keith's hair.

They go up to Takashi's room to gaze at his glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling, and Takashi tells Keith everything he knows about space. Keith nods eagerly, eyes wide, with Black curled up in his lap. His new brother is really cool.


	12. Mouse Days

Fourth grade starts at the end of August, and Keith quietly slips into his new life. The other kids at school don't really talk to him, and before he wouldn't really mind, but now, after having a life filled with friends and fun, it feels lonely to go back to scribbling hippos on his notebook. While the other children play four square and tag, Keith sits at the picnic table near the teachers; unlike his old school, this school doesn't have any magical benches at the end of the playground, and students aren't permitted to sit at the far end of the field, so he sits silently next to the chatting teachers and draws.

He used to only draw hippos, but now he's learned to draw plenty of animals- sharks, dogs, cats, and even people, a bit. He's started his own comic series, with Red and Blue and Yellow and sometimes even their leader, Black, but without Lance and Hunk, it feels wrong.

One day, a bully named Sendak marches up to him in the hallway, sneering down at him. Before anything like the last time can happen, Keith sprints to class, not wanting to punch anyone in the face. The guy apparently finds this offensive, deciding to make Keith's life suck and taunting him any chance he gets. Keith simply brushes him off, trying to keep his temper level, and ignores Sendak's existence. Eventually, Sendak stops teasing Keith, and no one approaches Keith at all, so Keith resumes being the loner. Keith wonders what it would have been like if Lance was facing Sendak alone. Is Lance doing okay? He shudders when he remembers Lance's tormented expression after that kid pushed him. Even though Keith and Lance are both scrawny, Lance is basically a twig, and coupled with his inability to stay calm, he could easily snap under the pressure. Hunk, on the other hand, is also nervous and sensitive, but he's strong too. Keith just hopes the two can protect each other.

The Shiroganes are extremely sweet to him. Though Mr. Shirogane isn't around much, Keith can tell Mrs. Shirogane and Mr. Shirogane love each other a lot, smiling a lot at each other. Takashi is Keith's role model, mostly because he's talented, kind, and loves space. However, what Keith doesn't like is that Takashi has a girlfriend. Ew! In his grade, girls still chase boys, so Keith isn't willing to approach any girls in case they sprint after him for no reason.

When the time comes for Keith to meet Takashi's girlfriend, he pouts stubbornly until he actually meets her.

"Hello, Keith! I'm Allura," the girl smiles warmly, sticking a hand out to Keith. He only eyes her manicured hand with a wrinkled nose. Sure, she's pretty and nice and her accented voice is soothing, but she's still dating his older brother!

"You're Takashi's girlfriend?" Keith says, and Allura freezes, clearly blushing.

"Wha-?" Allura says blankly, as if she can't comprehend Keith's words. Takashi instantly glares meaningfully at Keith, his face just as red, and turns to Allura with a nervous laugh. "Hahaha, he's only a little kid, ignore him! He doesn't know what he's saying."

Keith cocks his head to the side, just as confused as Allura. "But Takashi always talks about how amazing and smart and perfect and cool and pretty you are, so I thought you were- mmph!" Takashi immediately clamps a hand over Keith's mouth before he can reveal any other embarrassing information, and Allura just blushes even more, eyes wide. The two teens awkwardly stare at each other in tense silence, and Keith looks between them, wondering if there's something he's not getting.

"… thanks, for um, thinking I'm cool. I think you're pretty cool too, Shiro," Allura finally breaks the silence with an awkward smile. Takashi offers a weak thumbs up in return.

"Shiro?" Keith questions, and Takashi sighs. "The kids at school call me Shiro as a nickname."

"Oh," Keith replies, before turning to march up the stairs and go back to drawing. Before he can, Allura calls, "Keith!"

"I heard that you like animals!" Allura says brightly, the previous blush fading. "So I brought my pet mice over so you could meet them!"

Keith thought girls didn't like mice- his mother always screamed when she saw one- but as Allura carefully takes the mice out of the plastic box she brought them in, he can tell she loves them. Four mice scurry around the table, with big beady eyes and fuzzy little bodies. Keith stares at the tiny rodents with fascination while Takashi attempts to regain composure. Allura, apparently, has already forgotten the incident as she scoops a mouse up in her hands.

"They're very smart! Sometimes I feel like they can understand what I'm saying, they learn tricks so easily. Here, do you want to hold him?" Allura pipes energetically. Keith shyly nods, and Allura places the mouse in Keith's waiting hands. It's warm, and it curiously looks up at Keith with huge, shiny, black eyes. Its nose twitches, as if it's sniffing him, and he pets it with a finger to feel the soft fur. Huh. Now he wants a mouse.

"That one is named Chulatt, he's the smallest of the bunch. Cute, isn't he?" Keith nods again. It seems like both Allura and Shiro are weird at naming pets, though Keith doesn't think he couldd do much better.

Out of nowhere, Black bounds into the room, and Keith quickly holds Chulatt away, eliciting a small squeak from the mouse. Allura only laughs as Black puts her paws on the table and the three other mice scramble towards her. Keith's eyes widen. Does she not realize they are about to meet their doom?!

"Cats eat mice!" Keith says frantically.

"Of course I know that. But Black and my mice are different." Allura points at the mice, who have now settled comfortably atop Black's velvety head between her ears. She doesn't seem to mind, or have any intention to devour the smaller animals.

"But I though cats like Tom want to eat mice like Jerry," Keith insists, calling upon his knowledge of cartoons.

"I thought so too. The first time I came over with the mice, Shiro and I were really worried when one of my mice, Platt, got out somehow. When we found him, he was riding on Black's back like she was a horse or something. Isn't that funny?" Allura says. Keith nods once again, carefully placing Chulatt on the cat now that the danger is gone.

"Anyway, we should get to studying, Shiro," Allura says, a glint in her eyes. Keith remembers Takashi saying that Allura can get really into schoolwork, and despite her calm and sweet attitude, she can get scary when people goof off. However, Takashi is the most responsible person Keith knows, so they're practically made for each other.

"Yeah," Takashi finally says, and the two of them head upstairs to Takashi's room. Keith stays behind to watch the mice ride Black, and he pretends they're him and his friends riding a dragon.

Keith totally forgets to check his email. He totally forgets he told Lance he would, and that Lance is wondering where the heck Keith is. Later, he'll regret it. A lot.


	13. Blue Signing Off

To: Keith Kogane

From: Lance McClain

Subject: Hi! :D

Hey Keith! I know you said you don't really use your email, but this is basically the only way I can contact you unless you get a phone. I also don't know where you live, so yeah, here I am, emailing you!

Anyway, I kinda miss you already. Now me and Hunk are just a pair instead of a trio, but Hunk's still fun to hang out with. Not the same without you though :(

How is it over there? It's kinda boring here, as always, but I hope you don't have a super mean aunt and uncle like Harry Potter. Do you at least have a room? Please tell me you don't live under the stairs with spiders. That would suck. No offense to spiders though. Do you have any siblings? If you do, then I can give you some advice on how to handle them, especially the little ones. Angelica really misses you, she's been throwing a tantrum every day because you usually come over all the time. I'm a big kid though, it's not like I've been crying a lot because you're not here!

I hope you have fun over there! Please respond ASAP so I know you're okay.

Pilot Blue signing off! :D

P.S. You need to read Harry Potter already! :0

P.P.S. Also, get a cell phone so I can text you!

 _Sent in August_

To: Keith Kogane

From: Lance McClain

Subject: Hi Again

Hi Keith! I guess you haven't checked your email since you haven't replied yet, haha. I'll keep sending emails until you do though! ;) Don't forget to open your present from me.

School started and I'm in the same class as Hunk which is amazing! He's really smart so he helps me in class and he's my partner. I'm not very good at school so he helps me after school. Hunk's the best! (you are too of course!) I found out I'm good at P.E. though, I'm good at and archery and swimming and soccer. I guess Hunk's the brains and I'm the brawn? Haha, no. You're definitely the brawn. I wonder where that leaves me.

Did you make any new friends? Don't forget I'm your best friend but you should still make friends. I know you're kinda quiet but don't sit alone all the time, you should show people your hippo drawings and impress them! You're totally gonna be a famous artist when you grow up.

Halloween is coming up and it's gonna be amazing. Hunk's going as a chef and I'm going as a clown because why not ;D luckily I'm not scared of clowns.

Oh, btw, Hunk says hi and he hopes you're ok! Please respond ASAP :)

Hopefully I'll hear from you soon, Pilot Red! This is Pilot Blue signing off!

 _Sent in October_

To: Keith Kogane

From: Lance McClain

Subject: It's me again

Keith! My buddy! Where are you? :0 did you become a cryptid like you've always wanted? Well it's ok, just send an email my way sometime soon, ok? :)) hope you liked my b-day present for you!

It's winter break, so I'm chilling at home braiding Angelica's hair. That girl really needs to learn how to braid her own hair, jeez. If you were here, at least I'd have someone to talk to, but I have to listen to her rant about how Goldfish are better than Cheez-its. Does it really matter which one is better?

Hunk is on vacation with his family all the way in Samoa so I am dying here alone, help me Keith! (; ^ ;) I mean I love my family more than anything else but still. If I have to watch Frozen one more time I shall surely perish… bleh :P

There's a school play coming up and I'm thinking of auditioning. I mean everyone thinks I'm way too dramatic anyway so I guess I can channel that into being a star on the stage. I'm gonna try for the lead role. Wish me luck! (if I'm not dead before then)

Respond soon! Blue signing off.

 _Sent in December_

To: Keith Kogane

From: Lance McClain

Subject: none

today someone called hunk fat. i got mad and told him that at least hunk is a good person, unlike him. that made him punch me. at least he got in trouble. i wish you were here though. you would have been better at protecting us. you're strong and cool. i wish i was like you.

i miss you. write back.

 _Sent in January_

To: Keith Kogane

From: Lance McClain

Subject: Hey

Please ignore the last email :)

Today me and Hunk got a new friend! She's really short, even shorter than you lol, but she's really strong and smart too. You two would probably be good friends if you were here, you guys are kinda similar.

Um… sometimes I feel like a third wheel. Do you know what I mean? I know Hunk is my best friend, I've known him for a while. But he and Katie are both super smart and I'm really dumb. I don't think they're purposely leaving me out, but we all sit together and I'm the only one who doesn't get it. Katie's actually two years younger than Hunk and me (we're 9 and she's 7) but she's way smarter than me. She skipped two grades. I didn't know that was even possible!

I'm probably over reading things like normal, don't worry! I'm fine :)

I auditioned for the play and I'm not the lead role but I'm one of the main roles so that's cool! The guy I'm playing is really dramatic and goofy, so I guess that makes since, huh.

I don't think you read these anymore, did you forget your password? lol.

Anyway, Blue signing off.

 _Sent in March_

To: Keith Kogane

From: Lance McClain

Subject: hi

School's out! Whoo! You should visit sometime, you remember where I live, right? I hope you do, because I have no idea where you live. Send me your address sometime! I wanna meet your family. I don't really know anything about your new life over there, you should write back sometime!

Who am I kidding, you probably totally forgot about your email account. That's okay I guess. I guess I'll keep sending emails to your abandoned account just because. Maybe like a diary or something, I dunno. I wish you emailed me back though. This feels really one-sided.

The play was a few weeks ago. It felt really good to be in the spotlight for once. I think I might have cried at the end (don't worry, they were happy tears, and I don't think anyone other than Hunk noticed). Hunk and Katie did a science fair project together and got first place. Science is confusing, man. Or I'm dumb? Or both.

Our family's gonna go to an amusement park next weekend. Wish you could go with. Then it wouldn't be so terrible being stuck in a cramped car in the back with all the luggage while Angelica sings her little kid songs just to get on everyone's nerves. Road trips are the worst. I mean, traveling seems really fun, just not with my huge family. Don't get me wrong, I love them to bits, but huge family trips don't work out. tbh it's kinda embarrassing, though I would never say that out loud.

Bye imaginary Keith. Blue signing off.

 _Sent in June_

To: Keith Kogane

From: Lance McClain

Subject: dear diary

I was really looking forward to summer, but dude. I'm dying over here. It's Ohio! How is it so hot?

I went to the beach yesterday and got sunscreen in my eye, which sucked, but it was amazing! The beach is officially my favorite place ever. There was a ton of seaweed everywhere, and a bunch of white seashells that I collected in my pockets. Mom just sat on a towel 'tanning' the whole time while my Dad helped Angelica make a sand castle that looked more like a camel hump than an actual building… We left as the sun was setting and it was really pretty. What wasn't amazing was how a bunch of dead ants were washed up on the shore in the sand, so I had to make sure I wasn't stepping on insect corpses. Ew! :/

Next week I'm going out in the middle of nowhere to my uncle's farm. Basically everything is just fields of corn and country music (I still don't get how you like country music so much). Even though it's kinda boring at least I'll finally get to milk a cow! I'm gonna be the best farm boy ever!

My bday is coming up soon, so yeah, I'll be the same age as you for at least a month, so ha! Also I've been growing really quickly, so when I see you again I will definitely be able to look down on you :3

…I'm actually sad though. I don't think there's any hope that you'll see any of this, so… here goes nothing. I really, really miss you. My friends and family are amazing and I really love them but I miss having a bestie to do everything. Katie and Hunk are besties. If you came back it would all work out and I could have a bestie again. But that's selfish of me. You're probably happy over there, and it would be unfair to make you come back. I just wish we had more time together. We had less than two years together, but I wouldn't trade those two years for anything in the world. You made me feel really special. It was nice having a bestie. I hope you at least have a new bestie to make you feel happy. I wish it was me-

Anyway. I miss you. Bye.

 _Sent in July_


	14. Owl Days

"What am I even doing?" Lance mumbles as he clicks the send button. Yet another email sure to go unseen by Keith. To think that they live only a state away and Lance doesn't even know where Keith lives.

Lance wants Keith to see the emails. Or he doesn't, because some of them are really embarrassing. He doesn't know what he wants. He just wants Keith back.

"Ughhhhhh," Lance groans, dragging his fingers down his face with exasperation. He shouldn't be mad at Keith, he really shouldn't, but he can't help but wonder what exactly Keith is doing over there. Does Keith ever think of Lance anymore? It's been an entire year and Lance _still_ misses Keith. He kind of doubts he'll ever stop, but that means the dull throbbing pain in his chest will stay there forever. And that sucks!

But what if… what if Keith doesn't care about Lance anymore? If he's found another bestie to draw hippos with and play video games with and, and, and-

Lance starts crying. Again.

"This is dumb," he says out loud, though his voice is shakier than he'd like to admit. "Of course Keith cares! We pinky swore! You can't break a pinky swear!" _But it's just some words, it's not like he signed an oath. He isn't obligated to stay your friend forever, you know. That's just selfish. He's somewhere else now, he can be friends with whoever he wants._

"I know. But that doesn't mean we still can't be friends!" _Then why isn't he answering your emails?_

"Because he didn't see them yet!" _It's been a whole year._ "Well, he doesn't even have a phone! He's really outdated!" _How do you know he doesn't have a phone now?_ "Shut up!"

Lance just wants to see Keith again.

Later Lance bikes to Hunk's house. It always makes him feel better in the comfort of Hunk, Hunk's moms, and Hunk's adorable dogs. However, he didn't realize Katie would already be there, chattering excitedly about something. He doesn't bother to listen because it's probably something smart he wouldn't understand. He just plays on his Nintendo DS, which seems like all he's been doing lately. Video games are one thing Lance feels good at.

As Hunk and Katie chat, Lance idly fiddles with the buttons, dragging the stylus over the screen. He doesn't hear anything Hunk and Katie say until he hears the word "Hedwig."

"Hedwig?!" Lance screams, abruptly sitting up in the comfy blue bean bag chair. He immediately brightens, making Hunk visibly relax with relief. Lance probably looked all mopey before, but that doesn't matter.

"Hedwig!" Katie screams back.

"Why are we yelling?!" Hunk interrupts, equally loudly.

" _You_ know Harry Potter?!" Katie and Lance continue, ignoring Hunk and pointing at each other with newfound vigor.

"I thought you were into science-y stuff, not magic!" Lance says, eyes sparkling.

"How can I _not_ know Harry Potter? And anyway, I didn't know you liked to read!"

"I like comic books," Lance thinks of Keith, "and Harry Potter is the one book I will accept. Obviously it's the best! J.K. Rowling is a genius!" Lance rambles the way he used to before Keith left. Hunk grins at him knowingly.

"Hedwig is the best. If could own an owl, I totally would. Heck, I'd go to Hogwarts just so I could have an excuse to own an owl," Katie excitedly joins in. Hmmm. Katie does kinda look like a bird, but more like…

"Pigeon?" Lance says out loud by accident.

Katie sighs. "Not you too! My brother, Matt, calls me Pidge!"

"Because you're short?"

"Not the point!"

It's suddenly a lot easier to talk to Katie, even tease her. Lance used to feel really far away from Katie because the obvious gap in intellect, but Katie is actually pretty cool to talk to.

"What house are you in?" he asks.

"Slytherin!" Katie says smugly. "Obviously the best house!"

"No!" Lance replies, mock-offended. "But I'm a Gryffindor!" If Keith would just agree to read Harry Potter, Lance is sure he would be a Gryffindor as well.

"I'm a Hufflepuff!" Hunk chimes. Lance can't say he didn't expect that.

The rest of the summer afternoon is spent gushing over Harry Potter, and when Katie finds out Lance loves video games, she challenges him in Mario Kart (unfortunately, they end up tying, which is never satisfying) and Lance feels like he can actually talk to Katie without feeling inferior. He ends up having the most fun he's had in months, and is glad to call Katie his friend.

Keith, on the other hand, is not having much luck finding any friends.


	15. Bittersweet

Hunk is worried about Lance. Ever since Keith left, he's been different. A lot different.

Sure, he still smiles and laughs with Hunk. He still high-fives Hunk every time he says something cool. He's still Lance, with braces and video games and friendship bracelets and a seashell collection. That much hasn't changed.

But now Lance doesn't even ramble anymore about whatever he's thinking. He'll start to say something before trailing off in a low mumble, as if he's afraid what people will say. And the Lance Hunk used to know would never pass up a chance to go get ice cream and play at the arcade. Hunk goes alone with Katie nowadays, and Katie's awesome, but it's not the same without his buddy by his side. Instead of just chilling, spending time with Katie is more about all the things Katie is learning- she's absolutely infatuated with learning as much as she can, and it shows. She kind of reminds Hunk of Hermione from Harry Potter, actually. She's one of the smartest people he knows (other than his mothers, of course). If Lance hung out with them it would balance out perfectly and they would have a trio just like Harry Potter (Lance makes a great Ron- big family, super tall, and a nice friend to have). However, last week, maybe things changed a bit. Lance and Katie actually talked without Lance acting slightly awkward and Katie stopping to talk to Hunk instead. They actually teased each other and played Mario Kart! Hunk can't wait to ask Lance to come with them this week.

So Hunk calls Lance (Lance is so lucky that he actually gets a cell phone! Hunk's not allowed until he's 13, and even tiny Katie has a computer). Lance agrees for the first time, and he sounds excited! Hunk can't wait to spend more time with his best bud. He feels like Lance has been distant, even more so after Katie and Hunk became good friends. He wishes they could all just be best friends. It would be so much easier if Keith was here.

Hunk bikes down to one of the three ice cream places in town, the one that Lance likes the most because his sister and her cool boyfriend work there. Katie is already there, tapping away at her phone before screaming, "I'm gonna defenestrate this stupid phone!"

Hunk raises an eyebrow. "Defenestrate? Even I haven't heard that word."

"It means to throw something or someone out a window. My brother Matt told me that! He's in high school."

Hunk assumes that Katie's brother is just as amazingly smart as she is. "You probably shouldn't throw it out the window," Hunk points out. "Also, don't say the s-word!"

"I don't mean I'm _actually_ going to throw it out the window, this game is just so laggy!" Katie rolls her eyes as if it was obvious she wasn't going to defenestrate it. Hunk doesn't get it; she just said she would! "Also, stupid isn't an s-word! The s-word is shi-"

Before seven-year-old Katie can say anything that will change this fic to a teen rating, the bell on the door jingles as Lance swings the door open and hears Katie's choice language.

"Uh-uh-uh, Pigeon!" Lance waggles a long finger at Katie, who only sticks her tongue out at him. "Wait until high school to start dropping swear words!"

"You can't tell me what to do!" Katie replies, hands on her hips with a challenging grin. "You're not my mom!"

"But I _am_ a big brother, and if I can handle Angelica, I can handle you!"

"Honestly, I think I should get more credit for being able to take care of you little brat," comes a sweet voice from the counter. Lance's beautiful blonde sister waves lazily behind her legs, which are perched in front of her on the counter.

"Nyma!" Lance says brightly. "Hi!"

"Ya gonna order or not?" Nyma gestures to the many ice cream flavors. Standing behind the display is Nyma's boyfriend, Rolo. He takes off his headphones and nods to Lance before glancing at Hunk and Katie. Hunk smiles brightly while Katie awkwardly stares back.

"Hey buddy. Are these your friends?" Rolo asks with a slight smile. Lance nods.

"Lance, the little lady is right. You should let her swear, it's not hurting anyone," Nyma smirks at Katie, who beams and says, "Heck yeah!"

"No morality," Lance says under his breath, dramatically covering Hunk's ears like a protective parent. "It's okay Hunk, don't listen to those filthy troublemakers."

This is the most Lance-like Lance has been, even more than last week, and it makes Hunk want to tackle his friend in a hug, so he does without pause. Lance laughs and ruffles Hunk's hair as Hunk lifts him in a huge hug. Nyma watches with amusement while Katie only shakes her head fondly. "Bromance," Rolo says, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye.

"So, what'll you have? You're holding up the line," Rolo says, breaking their bonding moment. Hunk puts Lance down and looks around, but there's no line. Is he just joking? Hunk doesn't get his humor.

"I'll have the chocolate peanut butter," Katie says without hesitation. Rolo dutifully scoops a large scoop and presses it into a cake cone. Lance wrinkles his nose at the cake cone. "Not a waffle cone or sugar cone? A _cake_ cone?"

Katie only sticks her tongue out again as she takes the cone. "Too sweet for my liking. Did you know that sugar and waffle cones are 1/3 sugar while cake cones are less than 5% sugar?"

This makes Lance frown a little. Maybe Katie's trivia makes Lance feel bad? "I didn't know that at all!, did you Lance?" Hunk says loudly. Knowing that Hunk doesn't seem to know either makes Lance visibly relieved. "Yeah, that's pretty interesting. That explains why cake cones are so bland!"

"Pasta and rice are kinda bland, but that's why you eat them with sauce and vegetables. It's the same with cones. They're supposed to go with ice cream, which is already sweet," Hunk points out. "But still. Waffle cones are the best." Hunk and Lance high five enthusiastically.

"What about you?" Rolo asks Hunk. Hunk contemplates the array of flavors for a moment. "Um… could I please have the coconut ice cream?"

When it's Lance's turn to order, however, he seems to freeze up when he sees the strawberry ice cream. "Oh, the strawberry? It's pretty sweet, I'll admit, but if you've got a _sweet tooth_ you'll like it," Rolo says. Hunk doesn't know why, but Lance seems to droop at the sight of the strawberry ice cream. "Nah, they're… too sweet for me," Lance says slowly, eyes lingering on the strawberry for a bit too long. He reluctantly drags his eyes to the vanilla. "I'll, um, have the vanilla. Thanks."

Katie scoffs, "Really? Vanilla-"

Hunk hushes her sharply before she can continue. For some reason, it seems like Lance might start crying. He doesn't know why, but Hunk's willing to bet that strawberries have something to do with a certain Asian boy named Keith. Hunk and Katie stay silent as Lance takes the vanilla cone and licks it quietly. However, after two seconds of silence, he turns to them and asks if there's something on his face, and they assure him there's not. "Then why the long faces?" Lance asks, and the tense atmosphere dissolves into a more comfortable one.

"Don't worry, this ice cream is really good. Probably way better than the strawberry," Lance laughs softly, and something tells Hunk that Lance has accepted his new life without Keith. Hunk doesn't know if it's a bad thing to let go of the hope Keith might come back, but what matters is that Lance is happy. Right now, all he can do is stand by Lance's side.


	16. Fluff Interlude

(A/N: Thought you guys deserved some fluff so here's some young Lance and Keith!)

Lance is used to kisses. His mom kisses him on the cheek every night as she tucks him into bed, and he's smothered by kisses during every family reunion, overzealous relatives smooching him on the forehead and asking if he's been good.

He had asked Nyma what kissing is like a few weeks ago as they watched a movie, as she's already 15, and she said, "kiss your arm." Lance did, and it didn't feel like anything special.

"That's all it feels like. Nothing special," she had yawned. He had wondered why movies made it seem like something amazing and mind blowing if it was nothing special.

But somehow, this is different, Lance thinks, as he kisses Keith.

It's not incredibly breathtaking, but it feels pleasant- at least, more pleasant than kissing his arm. It's a bit warm, and he can feel Keith's breath against his. It's much nicer than Nyma described.

"Why'd you do that?" Keith gasps once Lance pulls away. He did it quickly, not as long as the people on TV, but Keith's eyes are still wide in shock.

"I wanted to see what it was like," Lance admits, "but also, my mom says you give kisses to people close and important to you. And you are my best friend!"

"Oh, that makes sense." Keith says, still looking a bit ruffled.

"Did you not like it?" Lance frets. He liked it, but if Keith didn't like it…

"Don't worry," Keith says quickly before contemplating a bit. "It felt…nice. I think I liked it."

"Really?!" Lance's blue eyes brighten with happiness. "I'm glad!"

"Me too," Keith agrees with a shy smile. "Thank you."

Keith then places a small kiss on Lance's cheek, and Lance can't stop grinning. He touches his cheek, feeling a bit dazed, and he can't wait to tell Nyma and his mom how great kisses are!

(Of course, Lance will eventually learn that kisses on the lips are reserved for special someones, though he doesn't get why that someone can't be Keith. His mom also tells him he should wait until he's older, so Lance vows that he'll kiss Keith as much as he wants when he's in high school, please and thank you. Until then, hugs will have to suffice.)

—

"Camping, camping, camping," Lance loudly sings off-tune, marching around his backyard. (An older Keith would have rolled his eyes fondly or chided him for disturbing the peace, but this Keith only giggles, because Lance is his super cool fun friend.)

Ever since seeing people camping out in the woods and fighting bears on TV, Lance's heart has been set on camping in the wilderness, but to his dismay, his mother said, "I'm not sending you out to be eaten by bears, mijo!" Luckily, Lance persuaded her to let him and Keith camp out in Lance's backyard, where there are luckily no bears to be found.

"Look, Keith! My dad put up a tent!" Lance excitedly says, opening the flap of the tent so they can crawl inside. Lance put a blanket and two pillows inside, one for him and one for Keith. There's just enough room for them to sleep together without jabbing into each others' space.

"Look, Keith! A fire pit!" Lance points to a brick pit, which doesn't seem to have a fire in it yet. "I brought marshmallows and chocolate and graham crackers so we can have s'mores!"

"That's a weird name," Keith points out.

"It's because they're so yummy that you'll want some more!"

After Lance points out all the things that will make for a successful camping trip, they watch the sun disappear behind the trees. The sky is a canvas painted red to orange to yellow before fading into light blue, the light blue dissolving into a dark navy hue dotted with stars. Lance holds Keith's hand, and they sit in comfortable silence, the sound of crickets the only sound. Soon, Lance's dad opens the back door and reminds them to sleep by 9. The two eat turkey and cheese sandwiches before reading Keith's comic books under the light of a flashlight, and when they've digested their food, Lance deems it alright to roast marshmallows.

After Lance's dad lights the fire pit, Keith stares in awe at the flames. The crackling fire reaches towards the sky, bright and alluring as it dances about. Lance warms his hands by it, and Keith's attention is turned to Lance's face lit by the soft golden glow. Lance suddenly smiles at Keith, bright eyes illuminated by the fire, radiating pure joy, and he's never looked more _alive._

"Woah," Keith whispers, and Lance nods.

"The fire is really cool, isn't it?" he agrees. Keith wasn't just talking about the fire, but he chooses not to say that.

After Keith burns all his marshmallows into black abominations, Lance offers Keith a perfectly toasted marshmallow, not raw and not burnt. The chocolate melts from the heat of the marshmallow, and combined with the crunchy and sweet graham cracker, Keith's taste buds are about ready to melt, too.

"I can't believe you've never had one!" Lance comments, fondly watching Keith' blissful expression.

"Me neither." Keith feels betrayed that the world could hide such a delicacy from him!

The two boys finally turn in for the night, and though the tent is big enough for them to comfortably sleep side by side, they end up curled against each other under the blanket, safe in each other's arms.


	17. What if

The news came when Keith was still in class.

Fifth grade has just started. Keith's class is alright- no bullies, but no one goes out of their way just to talk to him. He's quiet and studious, and the teacher seems to like him. He was looking forward to a peaceful year of comics and homework.

But then the news came.

"It's gonna be alright, honey," Mrs. Shirogane sniffles, trying to smile through her tears. "It'll be okay in the end."

It sounds more like she's trying to convince herself with overused words of comfort, but Keith leans into her side anyway. It feels weird to call her Mrs. Shirogane, so he's come to think of her as a sort of aunt, even if they aren't related by blood.

Mrs. Shirogane is trembling a bit, but she wraps her arms around Keith with the protective grip of a mother rather than a polite embrace from an acquaintance. He closes his eyes and listens to her heart beat as it thumps, even faster than his own. Ba-bump. Ba-bump. Ba-bump. It calms him down a bit.

"Takashi will be home from school soon. I just thought you deserved to know first, Keith. Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah," Keith replies. Should he be feeling bad? He doesn't know. He just feels numb, detached, like this is a dream. The words haven't caught up to his brain quite yet.

"Okay, I'm going to make you tea," his aunt says from the counter, swiping another time at her eyes before grabbing a red mug from a cabinet.

"Hot chocolate?" Keith asks instead. He doesn't really want tea now. It reminds him of her…

"Of course," Takashi's mother replies. Silence hangs in the air, along with the buzz of the microwave. Keith has never been good at telling if a silence is awkward, comfortable, or unpleasant. He doesn't try to break it either, only settling further into the couch. Black bounds onto the cushion and nuzzles into his thigh, and Keith gratefully pets her velvety fur.

Just as the microwave beeps to signify the hot chocolate is ready, the front door opens and a smiling Takashi steps through. At the sight of Takashi, Black immediately leaves Keith (the little traitor) to greet Takashi. Takashi scoops the cat in his arms and trots over to the counter.

"Mom! You wouldn't believe what happened at school today! Allura asked me to homecoming!" Takashi excitedly gushes, cheeks flushed and eyes bright. "Oh, and is that hot chocolate I smell?"

"Yes it is, but it's for Keith, mind you. And congratulations, dear, that's wonderful," Mrs. Shirogane says with a weary but genuine smile. "I knew she would make the first move."

Takashi opens his mouth to retort, probably that he would make a move eventually, but then he seems to notice his mother's red eyes and tired posture. "Mom… have you been crying?"

"Oh, I probably look like a mess right now," she laughs, her voice cracking a bit. "Yes… let's all have a family meeting."

At this, Keith reluctantly peels himself from his warm position on the couch and plops into a wood chair at the dinner table. Takashi sits down too, depositing Black (who is getting a bit heavy these days though Takashi will never admit it) onto the table.

"Hi buddy. Aren't you supposed to still be in school?" Takashi teases Keith lightly, though his voice is laced with concern. Keith shakes his head.

"I picked him up early from school," Mrs. Shirogane says, sitting down and sliding a steaming ceramic mug over to Keith.

"Oh?" Takashi frowns. He patiently waits for his mother to explain.

Keith's aunt sighs. "I was at home when I received news that… Keith's mother… passed away this morning. They didn't have anyone else to contact except for me and Keith's father. I picked up Keith from school early a bit ago."

Takashi's gaze is turned to Keith, radiating sympathy. "I… didn't know. I'm sorry, Keith."

"It's not your fault," Keith says earnestly. It's really not.

"How did…?" Takashi asks his mother. She shakes her head. "I'll tell you later, honey."

They sit in silence, Keith sipping the hot chocolate and staring at Black. A few moments later, Takashi scoots his chair closer to Keith and silently asks permission for a hug, and Keith complies. Black then walks over and nudges at Keith, as if trying to comfort him as well.

A bit tearfully, Mrs. Shirogane embraces both boys, and Keith realizes that she's hurting a lot. She just lost her best friend.

The day of her funeral, Takashi and Mrs. Shirogane take Keith, and they all wear black clothes. It's all a blur, and Keith doesn't remember that much of the actual funeral, but he does remember seeing his father there, silent. Their eyes meet for a moment, but then his father turns away, and Keith's heart hurts for some reason.

The most vivid thing Keith remembers from that day is the crushing realization of what just happened. Until that point, the news hadn't really processed in his brain- that his mother is dead. But then everything seemed to click, and Keith is devastated.

He clings onto Mrs. Shirogane and sobs into her nice black dress, ruining it with tears and snot, while Takashi rubs circles into his back. Keith never thought he would be this sad about his mother, but before the divorce, he remembers how she still smiled at him. How she smelled like flower perfume instead of stale alcohol, how her eyes were crinkled with soft joy instead of framed by dark circles, how her voice was light and smooth instead of gravelly and harsh. Maybe she was more broken than he had thought. Maybe he could have helped her instead of leaving her. He knows it's absurd, but he feels like he should have done something to save her. Their relationship was tense and awkward, but she was still his mother. Now she's gone forever.

"She's in our hearts," Mrs. Shirogane says.

But is she really there at all?

"She's in a better place."

Is it so terrible to be alive?

"I'm here, Keith."

Keith only holds on tighter to her dress, not willing to let her go too. She doesn't — she is still there, and so is Takashi.

Keith wants to forget.


End file.
